The Marauders Read the Books
by rosie0522
Summary: Ok, I know that there are many stories like this one, but please read it! It's what I think would happen if the Marauders, Lily, and Snape read the Harry Potter books in their sixth year! I think you'll like it! Eventual James/Lily! Spoiler Alert (obviously)!
1. Prolouge

**Hey everyone! This is my first Harry Potter fic, so I hope you like it!**

**Disclaimer: If I owned Harry Potter, I would actually publish this fic!**

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It was a sunny and warm Sunday in May at Hogwarts. Everyone was outside, enjoying the day. Except for six unlucky students.

Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, Prongs, Evans, and Snape (or Snivellus, as the Marauders called him) were walking nervously up to Professor Dumbledore's office in silence. They had received a note that morning in the common room before breakfast. It had read:

_Dear Mr. Lupin, Potter, Black, Pettigrew, and Miss Evans (assuming you are reading this),_

-which, of course, she was-

_Please report to Professor Dumbledore's office immediately after breakfast. I have already spoken to your other professors, and you have been excused from your classes for the next week in order for us to... resolve this matter _(the boys had cheered at this, while Lily had rolled her eyes)_. __Again, please report to Professor Dumbledore's office as soon as you finish breakfast. Oh, and, Lily, if you don't mind, please tell Mr. Snape to come, too. Thank you._

_Sincerely,  
Professor M. McGonagall_

They had been worried and silent all throughout breakfast, trying to sneak peeks at McGonagall and Dumbledore to see if they looked angry. They didn't, which slightly calmed Lily. When they finished, they had walked out of the Great Hall together, and now they were walking to Dumbledore's office. They reached the gargoyle and realized that none of them knew the password.

"What do we do?" asked Lily anxiously. She had never been late for a meeting all six years she had been at Hogwarts.

"I don't know!" exclaimed Remus. He, too, had only missed a meeting once or twice in all his years at Hogwarts.

Suddenly, without any of them saying a word, the stone gargoyle opened, revealing the staircase that lead up to the office. They all looked at each other, half-curious and half-scared, as they climbed onto the stairs and knocked on the door.

It opened, and they walked in to see the professors already there, with a package on Dumbledore's desk.

"Ah, good morning, boys, Lily," said Dumbledore cheerfully. "Have a seat." Six beanbag chairs appeared on the floor in a circle. Each of the Marauders, even Moony, gave a shout of glee and jumped on to them happily. Lily chuckled and Severus rolled his eyes with a small grin and they sat on the remaining two. The order in which they sat was: James, Lily, Sirius, Remus, Wormtail, and Severus. Next to James, two larger chairs appeared as Professor McGonagall flicked her wand, and Dumbledore and McGonagall sat down, closing the circle. Dumbledore was holding the package.

"You are all probably wondering why I had Professor McGonagall summon you to my office. Professor, if you would please," he said, gesturing to the kids.

"A package arrived this morning on my desk, via owl. It was addressed to you six, myself, and Professor Dumbledore. It came with a note." She pulled out a small piece of paper from her pocket. "It reads:

_To whom it may concern:_

_Hello! In case you don't know, there are three people writing this letter. My name is Harry Potter. The other two are my best friends, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger. We just finished the Second Wizarding War. I am the son of- Don't tell them too much, Harry! Sorry, I'm Hermione. We can't reveal too much, but the Minister has just given us permission to send this to you. It may help save us all. In this package, you will find seven books. They are, in order:_

_Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone  
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets  
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban  
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire  
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix  
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince  
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows_

_You must read them all the way through. Our fate depends on you. Yeesh, Hermione! Don't put so much pressure on them! They're only sixth years! Hey, it's Ron here! She's right, though. Depending on what you do after reading them, you could quite possibly save a lot of lives! Alright, alright, guys! And you told me not to reveal too much! It's Harry again! Ok, we'll let you decide what to do, but you have to read the books, and in order! Um... bye! Ugh, boys.-Hermione._

_Sincerely,  
Harry, Ron, and Hermione!_

Everyone looked at each other.

"I have a son?!" burst out James.

"Not necessarily, mate! The girl wouldn't let him say!" said Sirius.

"He didn't have to! How many people do you know with the last name 'Potter?!'" he asked.

"Calm down, Potter," said McGonagall. "We'll get to the bottom of this. Professor Dumbledore and I have decided that we will do what these... future kids have told us, and read these books. You will report here every day for as long as this takes, and then we will decide what to do. Any questions?"

No one said anything.

"Alright, then! Are we ready?" asked Dumbledore happily.

The six kids, including Severus, exchanged looks, and they all said together:

"Alright, then. Let's read."

* * *

**Ok! Next chapter, they read the first book! Please review!**


	2. Book 1, Chapter 1

**Hey people! Sorry for the wait, I was really busy with school! Ugh, too much homework! Alright, on with the story!**

**BTW, anything in bold is from the book! Alright, here's the next chapter!**

* * *

Everyone settled in their seats. Dumbledore tore off the packaging paper like a child on Christmas, causing everyone to laugh, even Professor McGonagall. He held out the stack of books, and tossed the first book out with his eyes closed. It landed squarely on Remus' lap. He just stared at it, then at Dumbledore, then back to it.

"Well, then! You read first, Mr. Lupin, and we will take turns every chapter, going in a circle," said Dumbledore, opening his eyes.

"Alright," said Remus nonchalantly, and he began.

**"Chapter One: The Boy Who Lived."**

"Great nickname," commented James.

**"Mr. and Mrs. Dursley, of number four, Privet-"**

"_Dursley?!_ As in, Vernon Dursley?! Don't tell me Petunia married him!" exclaimed Lily.

"I don't know, maybe if you would all stop interrupting me, we'd find out!" said Remus, annoyed.

"Alright, alright! Sorry!" Lily said.

**"-Drive, were proud to say that they were perfectly normal, thank you very much. They were the last people you'd expect to be involved in anything strange or mysterious, because they just didn't hold with such nonsense."**

"Yeah, you got that right," muttered Lily.

**"Mr. Dursley was the director of a firm called Grunnings, which made drills. He was a big, beefy man with hardly any neck, although he did have a very large mustache. Mrs. Dursley was thin and blonde and had nearly twice the usual amount of neck, which came in very useful as she spent so much of her time craning over garden fences, spying on the neighbors. The Dursleys had a small son called Dudley and in their opinion there was no finer boy anywhere."**

"Oh, yeah! That's definitely Tuney and Vernon. Ugh, why did she name him Dudley? I would've picked a name like... Harry! That's a nice name," Lily commented, staring out into space until James nudged her back to reality.

"Well, let's keep reading and find out more!" Peter squeaked.

Remus smiled and continued. **"The Dursleys had everything they wanted, but they also had a secret, and their greatest fear was that someone would discover it. They didn't think they could bear if someone found out about the Potters. Mrs. Potter was Mrs. Dursley's sister, but they hadn't met for several years."** Remus stopped, and everyone turned to look at James and Lily.

James looked as though both Christmas and his birthday had come early. He jumped up and screamed, "VICTORY IS MINE!", grabbed Lily and Sirius, and ran around the beanbags couple times to let of steam, with Sirius laughing his head off, and Lily having a look of half-pleased, half-wondering if she were crazy. They finally sat down, James hugged Lily one last time, and then motioned to Remus to keep reading. Everyone laughed, and Remus turned back to the book.

**"In fact, Mrs. Dursley pretended she didn't have a sister, because her sister and her good-for-nothing husband were as unDursleyish as it was possible to be."**

"Don't you dare talk about Lily that way!" said James, his face turning red, but Lily touched his arm and told him it was alright. He settled down, and Remus kept reading.

**"The Dursleys shuddered to think what the neighbors would say if the Potters arrived in the street. The Dursleys knew that the Potters had a small son, too, but they had never even seen him. This boy was another good reason for keeping the Potters away; they didn't want Dudley mixing with a child like that."**

"Ok, Petunia, you can poke fun at me all you want, but no one pokes fun at my son! You just wait til I get back home!" said Lily angrily.

"You cannot tell anyone about this, any of you," said Dumbledore.

"But-"

"No buts," he interrupted her. "Please continue, Mr. Lupin."

**"When Mr. and Mrs. Dursley woke up on the dull, gray Tuesday our story starts, there was nothing about the cloudy sky outside to suggest that strange and mysterious things would soon be happening all over the country. Mr. Dursley hummed as he picked out his most boring tie for work, and Mrs. Dursley gossiped away happily as she wrestled a screaming Dudley into his high chair."**

There were many scoffs, including from one of the two teachers (can you guess who?).

**"None of them noticed a large, tawny owl flutter past the window."**

"How clueless can you get?" murmured Sirius, causing a quiet chuckle from Lily.

**"At half past eight, Mr. Dursley picked up his briefcase, pecked Mrs. Dursley on the cheek, and tried to kiss Dudley good-bye but missed, because Dudley was now having a tantrum and throwing his cereal at the walls. "Little tyke," chortled Mr. Dursley as he left the house. He got into his car and backed out of number four's drive."**

"Jeez, they're so stupid!" said Sirius, James and Lily at the same time. Then they laughed.

"They sound alright to me," said Peter, earning stares from everyone except Dumbledore.

**"It was on the corner of the street that he noticed the first sign of something peculiar- a cat reading a map. For a second, Mr. Dursley didn't realize what he had seen- then he jerked his head around to look again. There was a tabby cat standing on the corner of Privet Drive, but there wasn't a map in sight. It must've been a trick of the light. Mr. Dursley blinked and stared at the cat. It stared back."**

"McGonagall," all the students said together, including Remus and Snape, turning to look at their teacher, and each being shocked to actually see her blushing.

"Alright, alright, just continue reading, Mr. Lupin," she said, shocking them even more with a smile. Remus shook his head and kept reading.

**"As Mr. Dursley drove around the corner, he watched the cat in his mirror. It was now reading the sign that said Privet Drive- no, _looking_ at the sign; cats couldn't read maps _or_ signs. Mr. Dursley gave himself a little shake and put the cat out of his mind. As he drove toward town he thought of nothing except a large order of drills he was hoping to get that day."**

"Geez, McGonagall, you don't need to make him paranoid," said Severus, speaking independently for the first time since they'd started reading. Surprisingly, everyone thought this was pretty clever and laughed.

**"But on the edge of town, drill were driven out of his mind by something else. As he sat in the usual morning traffic jam, he couldn't help noticing that there seemed to be a lot of strangely dressed people about. People in cloaks. Mr. Dursley couldn't bear people who dressed in funny clothes- the getups you saw on young people!"**

Everyone chuckled a little.

**"He supposed this was some stupid new fashion. He drummed his fingers on the steering wheel and his eyes fell on a huddle of these weirdos standing quite close by. They were whispering excitedly together. Mr. Dursley was enraged to see that a couple of them weren't young at all; why, that man had to be older than he was, and wearing an emerald-green cloak!"**

"Is he quite sure it was a man?" Peter asked suspiciously, eyeing McGonagall's emerald-green robes. She gave him a be-realistic look, and Remus kept reading.

**"The nerve of him! But then it struck Mr. Dursley that this was probably some silly stunt- these people were obviously collecting for something... yes, that would be it. The traffic moved on and a few minutes later, Mr. Dursley arrived in the Grunnings parking lot, his mind back on drills."**

"My sister married an idiot," said Lily, shaking her head and frowning.

**"Mr. Dursley always sat with his back to the window in his office on the ninth floor. If he hadn't, he might have found it harder to concentrate on drills that morning. _He _didn't see the owls swooping past in broad daylight, though people in the street did; they pointed and gazed open-mouthed as owl after owl sped overhead. Mr. Dursley, however, had a perfectly normal, owl-free morning. He yelled at five different people. He made several important telephone calls and shouted a bit more. He was in a very good mood until lunchtime, when he thought he'd stretch his legs and walk across the road to buy himself a bun from the bakery."**

"No offense, but your sister's husband is very stupid," James, Sirius, Remus, and Snape said to Lily. She just rolled her eyes and nodded.

**"He'd forgotten all about the people in cloaks until he passed a group of them next to the baker's. He eyed them angrily as he passed. He didn't know why, but they made him uneasy. This bunch were whispering excitedly, too, and he couldn't see a single collecting tin. It was on his way back past them, clutching a large donut in a bag, that he caught a few words of what they were saying.**

**"The Potters, that's right, that's what I heard-"**

**"-yes, their son, Harry-"**

"What about us?" asked James, gripping Lily's arm. Lily didn't even object to him calling her a Potter. She was too nervous.

"I don't know, it doesn't say," said Remus, scanning the page.

"Then keep reading!" exclaimed 'The Potters'.

**"Mr. Dursley stopped dead. Fear flooded him. He looked back at the whisperers as if he wanted to say something to them, but thought better of it.**

**"He dashed back across the road, hurried up to his office, snapped at his secretary not to disturb him, seized his telephone, and had almost finished dialing his home number when he changed his mind. He put the receiver back down and stroked his mustache, thinking... no, he was being stupid."**

"You've got that right!" exclaimed seven of the eight people in the room. (Guess what professor said it?)

**"Potter wasn't such an unusual name. He was sure there were lots of people called Potter who had a son called Harry. Come to think of it, he wasn't even sure his nephew _was_ called Harry. He'd never even seen the boy."**

"Now _that_, is what I call ignorant," said Snape. "And believe me, I know ignorant!"

**"It might have been Harvey. Or Harold. There was no point in worrying Mrs. Dursley; she always got so upset at any mention of her sister. He didn't blame her- if he'd had a sister like that... but all the same, those people in cloaks..."**

"Ok, now I'm offended," Lily said, tears brimming in her eyes. James scooted closer to her and she allowed him to wrap her in a comforting hug._ Is that really how Tuney thinks of me?, _Lily thought to herself.

"Don't be, Evans. We all love you," said Sirius, grinning. "GROUP HUG!" Every one of the students piled on top of Lily, and when they got off her, she was smiling and laughing, feeling grateful that she had such great friends. Remus continued.

**"He found it a lot harder to concentrate on drills that afternoon and when he left the building at five o'clock, he was still so worried that he walked straight into someone just outside the door."**

"Oh, I hope they're alright!" exclaimed Peter. Everyone just shook their heads.

**"Sorry," he grunted, as the tiny old man stumbled and almost fell. It was a few seconds before Mr. Dursley realized that the man was wearing a violet cloak. He didn't seem at all upset at being almost knocked to the ground. On the contrary, his face split into a wide smile and he said in a squeaky voice that made passerby stare, "Don't be sorry, my dear sir, for nothing could upset me today! Rejoice, for You-Know-Who has gone at last! Even Muggles like yourself should be celebrating, this happy, happy day!"**

Remus stopped, and a silence followed his words. Then, as it sunk in, everyone, except Peter, Snape, and Dumbledore either jumped up and shouted gleefully, or, in Professor McGonagall's case, fell to her knees and thanked the good Lord. "Voldemort's gone at last! Whoo-hoo!" James and Lily said. They had never been afraid to say Voldemort's name. Once everyone had settled down, Remus resumed reading, with quite a happier tone.

**"And the old man hugged Mr. Dursley around the middle and walked off.**

**"Mr. Dursley stood rooted to the spot. He had been hugged by a complete stranger. He also thought he had been called a Muggle, whatever that was. He was rattled. He hurried to his car and set off for home, hoping he was imagining things, which he had never hoped before, because he didn't approve of imagination."**

"What kind of person doesn't like imagination?" Sirius asked incredulously.

"Vernon Dursley," Lily answered back, a smile threatening to take over her face.

**"As he pulled into the driveway of number four, the first thing he saw- and it didn't improve his mood- was the tabby cat he'd spotted that morning. It was now sitting on his garden wall. He was sure it was the same one; it had the same markings around its eyes.**

"Did you sit there all day?!" Snape asked.

"I don't know! This is in the future, remember, Mr. Snape?" Professor McGonagall answered.

**"Shoo!" said Mr. Dursley loudly."**

Everyone cracked up, even Dumbledore.

**"The cat didn't move. It just gave him a stern look. Was this normal cat behavior? Mr. Dursley wondered. Trying to pull himself together, he let himself into the house. He was still determined not to mention anything to his wife."**

"Finally. Something smart!" exclaimed Remus.

**"Mrs. Dursley had had a nice, normal day. She told him over dinner all about Mrs. Next Door's problems with her daughter and how Dudley had learned a new word ("Won't!"). Mr. Dursley tried to act normally."**

"And there goes the rare smartness," commented Snape.

**"When Dudley had been put to bed, he went into the living room in time to catch the last report on the evening news:**

**"And finally, bird-watchers everywhere have reported that the nation's owls have been behaving very unusually today. Although owls normally hunt at night and are hardly ever seen in the daylight, there have been hundreds of sightings of these birds flying in every direction since sunrise. Experts are unable to explain why the owls have suddenly changed their sleeping pattern." The newscaster allowed himself a grin. "Most mysterious. And now, over to Jim McGuffin with the weather. Going to be any more showers of owls tonight, Jim?"**

"How careless can they get?" Professor McGonagall muttered under her breath, so only Dumbledore, who nodded seriously, could hear.

**"Well, Ted," said the weatherman, "I don't know about that, but it's only the owls that have been acting oddly today. Viewers as far apart as Kent, Yorkshire, and Dundee have been phoning in to tell me that instead of the rain I promised yesterday, they've had a downpour of shooting stars! Perhaps people have been celebrating Bonfire Night early- it's not until next week, folks! But I can promise a wet night tonight."**

"That careless," whispered Dumbledore to McGonagall. She looked at him and rolled her eyes.

**"Mr. Dursley sat frozen in his armchair. Shooting stars all over Britain? Owls flying by daylight? Mysterious people in cloaks all over the place? And a whisper, a whisper about the Potters..."**

"Which meant what, exactly?" Lily, James, and Peter asked, all three getting very confused.

"I don't know, it still doesn't say!" answered Remus, getting annoyed as well.

**"Mrs. Dursley came into the living room carrying two cups of tea. It was no good. He'd have to say something to her. He cleared his throat nervously. "Er- Petunia, dear- you haven't heard from your sister lately, have you?"**

"Here it comes," Lily whispered, bracing herself.

**"As he had expected, Mrs. Dursley looked shocked and angry. After all, they normally pretended she didn't have a sister.**

**"No," she said sharply. "Why?"**

**"Funny stuff on the news," Mr. Dursley mumbled. "Owls... shooting stars... and there were a lot of funny-looking people in town today..."**

**_So?" _Mrs. Dursley snapped.**

**"Well, I just thought... maybe... it was something to do with... you know... _her_ crowd."**

"What do you mean by that?" Sirius demanded of the book.

**"Mrs. Dursley sipped her tea through pursed lips. Mr. Dursley wondered whether if he dared tell her he'd heard the name "Potter." He decided he didn't dare. Instead he said, as casually as he could, "Their son- he'd be about Dudley's age now, wouldn't he?"**

**"I suppose so," said Mrs. Dursley stiffly.**

**"What's his name again? Howard, isn't it?"**

**"Harry. Nasty, common, if you ask me."**

**"Oh, yes," said Mr. Dursley, his heart sinking horribly. "Yes, I quite agree."**

"So he _does_ have a heart," commented Peter, finally saying something everyone could agree on.

**"He didn't say another word on the subject as they went upstairs to bed. While Mrs. Dursley was in the bathroom, Mr. Dursley crept to the bedroom window and peered down into the front garden. The cat was still there. It was staring down Privet Drive as though it were waiting for something."**

"Gee, Minnie, could you've been any more obvious?" James and Sirius asked, grinning creepily. She just gave Lily a sympathetic look, saying, "I'm so sorry you have to deal with this for the rest of your life."

"That's ok," said Lily. "I think it'll be fun. Because I can't even imagine living without him."

James looked at her, shocked that she had said that. Then he slowly pulled her towards him, and they shared their magical first kiss. While they kissed, they heard wolf-whistles from Remus, cat-calls from Sirius, and applause from Peter, Snape (amazingly), Professor McGonagall, and Dumbledore. When they broke apart, the other Marauders surrounded Prongs, congratulating him, and Snape approached Lily and wrapped her in hug, truly happy for her. When everyone was settled, Moony picked up the book, and began reading where he had left off.

**"Was he imagining things? Could all this have anything to do with the Potters? If it did... if it got out that they were related to a pair of- well, he didn't think he could bear it.**

**"The Dursleys got into bed. Mrs. Dursley fell asleep quickly but Mr. Dursley lay awake, turning it all over in his mind. His last, comforting thought before he fell asleep was that even if the Potters _were _involved, there was no reason for him to come near him and Mrs. Dursley. The Potters knew very well what he and Petunia thought about them and their kind... He couldn't see how he and Petunia could get mixed up in anything that might be going on- he yawned and turned over- it couldn't affect _them_..."**

"Yeah, I'm so sure," Lily said.

**"How very wrong he was."**

"See! I called it!" she exclaimed.

**"Mr. Dursley might have been drifting into an uneasy sleep, but the cat on the wall outside was showing no sign of sleepiness. It was sitting as still as a statue, its eyes fixed unblinkingly on the far corner of Privet Drive. It didn't so much as quiver when a car door slammed on the next street, nor when two owls swooped overhead. In fact, it was nearly midnight before the cat moved at all."**

"Minnie, let me ask you a question," said James. "Do you ever sleep?"

"Yes, I do, Mr. Potter," she answered. "But _you_ won't be for the next two weeks if you call me 'Minnie' one more time!"

"Me_ow_!" he and Sirius said. The others laughed, and McGonagall shook her head.

**"A man appeared on the corner the cat had been watching, appeared so suddenly and silently you'd have thought he'd just popped out of the ground. The cat's tail twitched and its eyes narrowed."**

"I get the feeling that McGonagall's mad at this man for something," said Peter.

"Well, duh!" exclaimed Snape. But no one had a clue who this man was.

**"Nothing like this man had ever been seen on Privet Drive. He was tall, thin, and very old, judging by the silver of his hair and beard, which were both long enough to tuck into his belt. He was wearing long robes, a purple cloak that swept the ground, and high-heeled, buckled boots. His blue eyes were light, bright, and sparkling behind half-moon spectacles and his nose was very long and crooked, as though it had been broken at least twice. This man's name was-" **everyone said the next line, except the man himself- "**Albus Dumbledore."**

**"Albus Dumbledore didn't seem to realize that he had just arrived in a street where everything from his name to his boots was unwelcome. He was busy rummaging in his cloak, looking for something. But he did seem to realize that he was being watched, because he looked up suddenly at the cat, which was still staring at him from the other end of the street. For some reason, the sight of the cat seemed to amuse him. He chuckled and muttered, "I should have known."**

"Wait, you knew she'd be there? And why were you two there, anyway?" Sirius asked.

"I suppose so, and I don't know. This is in the future, Mr. Black," Dumbledore responded politely.

**"He found what he was looking for in his inside pocket. It seemed to be a silver cigarette lighter."**

"Wait, you _smoke_?!" Peter asked in shock.

"No, Mr. Pettigrew, I don't. But I think I know what Mr. Lupin is talking about," Dumbledore said with a gleam in his eye.

**"He flicked it open, held it up in the air, and clicked it. The nearest street lamp went out with a little pop. He clicked it again- the next lamp flickered into darkness. Twelve time he clicked the Put-Outer, until the only lights left on the whole street were two tiny pinpricks in the distance, which were the eyes of the cat watching him."**

"AWESOME!" all the students said together.

**"If anyone looked out of their window now, even beady-eyed Mrs. Dursley, they wouldn't be able to see anything that was happening down on the pavement. Dumbledore slipped the Put-Outer back inside his cloak and set off down the street toward number four, where he sat down on the wall next to the next to the cat. He didn't look at it, but after a moment he spoke to it.**

**"Fancy seeing you here, Professor McGonagall."**

"WE CALLED IT! WE CALLED IT!" shrieked the kids.

"Mr. Lupin, please continue," said the person in question.

Remus continued, reading: **"He turned to smile at the tabby, but it had gone. Instead he was smiling at a rather severe-looking woman who was wearing square glasses exactly the shape of the markings the cat had had around its eyes. She, too, was wearing a cloak, an emerald one. Her black hair was drawn into a tight bun. She looked distinctly ruffled."**

"Oh my gosh, Professor, no offense intended, but do you EVER let your hair down?!" Lily asked.

"When I sleep and for very, very special occasions," the professor answered.

"Will you let your hair down now? Please?" Sirius asked.

"Come on, Professor, Sirius even said please! Let your hair down! That bun looks like it hurts!" James pleaded.

"Oh, fine!" she sighed, then reached up and pulled the pins out of her hair. Her raven-black, wavy hair fell down to her waist. She looked beautiful. And Peter said so.

"Wow, Professor, you look amazing!" he said, staring at her.

"So... beautiful..." Sirius said, at a loss for words.

"You really do look beautiful, Professor," Lily complimented.

"Thank you all, but I'm not going to keep it down unless Mr. Lupin keeps reading," McGonagall said.

"Oh, right!" Moony started where he left off.

**"How did you know it was me?" she asked.**

**"My dear Professor, I've never seen a cat sit so stiffly."**

"Haha!" laughed Sirius.

**"You'd be stiff if you'd been sitting on a brick wall all day," said Professor McGonagall.**

**"All day? When you could have been celebrating? I must have passed a dozen feasts and parties on my way here."**

**Professor McGonagall sniffed angrily.**

**"Oh yes, everyone's celebrating, all right," she said impatiently. "You'd think they'd be a bit more careful, but no- even the Muggles have noticed something's going on. It was on their news." She jerked her head back at the Dursleys' dark living-room window. "I heard it. Flocks of owls... shooting stars... Well, they're not completely stupid. They were bound to notice something. Shooting stars down in Kent- I'll bet that was Dedalus Diggle. He never had much sense."**

"What's so wrong with celebrating?" James asked.

**"You can't blame them," said Dumbledore gently. "We've had precious little to celebrate for eleven years."**

**"I know that," said Professor McGonagall irritably. "But that's no reason to lose our heads. People are being downright careless, out on the streets in broad daylight, not even dressed in Muggle clothes, swapping rumors."**

**She threw a sharp, sideways glance at Dumbledore here, as though hoping he was going to tell her something, but he didn't, so she went on. "A fine thing it would be if, on the very day You-Know-Who seems to have disappeared at last, the Muggles found out about us all. I suppose he really _has_ gone, Dumbledore?"**

"You worry too much, Professor," Severus commented.

**"It certainly seems so," said Dumbledore. "We have much to be thankful for. Would you for a lemon drop?"**

**"A _what_?"**

**"A lemon drop. They're a kind of Muggle sweet I'm rather fond of."**

"Really, sir? Really?" Remus asked, looking at his headmaster.

"Yes, actually, they seem to be very good," he replied. Remus laughed and kept reading.

**"No, thank you," Professor McGonagall coldly, as though she didn't think this was the moment for lemon drops. "As I say, even if You-Know-Who _has _gone-"**

**"My dear Professor, surely a sensible person like yourself can call him by his name? All this 'You-Know-Who' nonsense- for eleven years I have been trying to persuade people to call him by his proper name: _Voldemort._" Professor McGonagall flinched, but Dumbledore, who was unsticking two lemon drops, seemed not to notice. "It all gets so confusing if we keep saying 'You-Know-Who.' I have never seen any reason to be frightened of saying Voldemort's name."**

"I know!" Lily and James said together. "It's just a fake name anyways!"

**"I know you haven't," said Professor McGonagall, sounding half exasperated, half admiring. "But you're different. Everyone knows you're the only one You-Know- oh, all right, _Voldemort, _was frightened of."**

**"You flatter me," said Dumbledore calmly. "Voldemort had powers I will never have."**

**"Only because you're too- well- _noble_ to use them."**

**"It's lucky it's dark. I haven't blushed so much since Madam Pomfrey told me she liked my new earmuffs." **The kids giggled at this.

**"Professor McGonagall shot a sharp look at Dumbledore and said, "The owls are nothing next to the _rumors_ that are flying around. You know what everyone's saying? About why he's disappeared? About what finally stopped him?"**

"No! What is it? _What stopped him?!_" Lily and James asked anxiously.

"Well, stop interrupting me, and maybe we'll figure out!" Moony said, and read on.

**"It seemed that Professor McGonagall had reached the point she was most anxious to discuss, the real reason she had been waiting on a cold, hard wall all day, for neither as a cat nor as a woman had she fixed Dumbledore with such a piercing stare as she did now. It was plain that whatever "everyone" was saying, she was not going to believe it until Dumbledore told her it was true. Dumbledore , however, was choosing another lemon drop and did not answer.**

**"What they're _saying_," she pressed on, "is that last night Voldemort turned up in Godric's Hollow. He went to find the Potters. The rumor is that Lily and James Potter are- are- that they're- _dead._"**

**Dumbledore bowed his head. Professor McGonagall gasped.**

A shocked silence met these words. Every head turned towards James and Lily, who were sitting in silence, frozen, hands and fingers entwined. Their eyes met, and suddenly, Lily was leaning into James' shoulder, crying so hard that it was only a few moments until the shoulder of James' t-shirt was soaked. His eyes were filling with tears too, but he blinked them back, knowing that he had to stay strong, for Lily's sake. Suddenly, he felt two pairs of arms wrap around him, and when he looked up, he saw Sirius and Remus hugging him and Lily. He smiled weakly, but neither of them returned it. When they let go, Lily repositioned herself and held on to James in a hug. He hugged her back, and her felt two more pairs of arms wrap around them. He realized that it was Peter and Snape. He was shocked that Severus Snape would hug him, but when Snape smiled, he realized that, despite all that James had done to him, Snape still cared. James smiled back. When they let go, Lily let go too, though she did keep a firm grasp on James' hand. Then they had one last pair of arms wrap around them, to which they hugged back, both because they could hear Professor McGonagall sobbing, and because they could feel her tears running down their backs. She let them go, but kneeled in front of them.

"Listen to me, you two. I don't want either of you to cry. You will die a hero's death, fighting against Voldemort. And you stopped him! You two are the best students anyone could ask for, and kids, too. You're smart, pretty, handsome, kind, and brave. So don't cry. You are too special to cry," she said, choking back her own sob. She hugged them again, and they whispered in her ears, "Thank you. You are going to go even further than you already have. We know it, just have faith. You're the best teacher ever, Minerva McGonagall."

She pulled back and smiled. Once everyone had reduced to letting out the occasional sniffs, Moony kept reading.

**"Lily and James... I can't believe it... I didn't want to believe it... Oh, Albus..."**

**Dumbledore reached out and patted her on the shoulder. "I know... I know..." he said heavily.**

**Professor McGonagall's voice trembled as she went on. "That's not all. They're saying he tried to kill the Potters' son, Harry. But- he couldn't. He couldn't kill that little boy. No one knows why, or how, but they're saying that when he couldn't kill Harry Potter, Voldemort's power somehow broke- and that's why he's gone."**

"See! I told you Harry was a nice name," Lily said to the book. James looked at her, smiled, and shook his head, squeezing her hand. She squeezed back.

**"Dumbledore nodded numbly.**

**"It's- it's true?" faltered Professor McGonagall. "After all he's done... all the people he's killed... he couldn't kill a little boy? It's just astounding... of all the things to stop him... but how in the name of heaven did Harry survive?"**

**"We can only guess," said Dumbledore. "We may never know."**

"I feel like he knew already," said Peter, looking suspiciously at Dumbledore.

Sirius smacked the back of Wormtail's head. "Well, duh! Of course he knew already! He's Dumbledore!"

"Ouch," mumbled Wormtail, rubbing his head.

"I wouldn't be so sure, if I were you, Mr. Black," said Dumbledore with his famous twinkle in his eye. "Even I do not know everything."

Sirius smiled sheepishly.

**"Professor McGonagall pulled out a lace handkerchief and dabbed at her eyes beneath her spectacles. Dumbledore gave a great sniff as he took a golden watch from his pocket and examined it. It was a very odd watch. It had twelve hands but no numbers; instead, little planets were moving around the edge. It must have made sense to Dumbledore, though, because he put it back in his pocket and said, "Hagrid's late. I suppose it was he who told you I'd be here, by the way?"**

"Yeah! Go Hagrid!" shouted the Marauders, as Snape rolled his eyes and Lily just smiled at them all.

**"Yes," said Professor McGonagall. "And I don't suppose you're going to tell me _why_ you're here, of all places?"**

**"I've come to bring Harry to his aunt and uncle. They're the only family he has left now."**

"WHAT?" shrieked Lily and James, glaring angrily Dumbledore. He only held his hands up innocently.

"This has not happened yet. I don't know why I will bring him there, but I assume we'll find out," he said, gesturing for Moony to continue. He did, grudgingly.

**"You don't mean- you _can't_ mean the people who live _here_?" cried Professor McGonagall, jumping to her feet and pointing at number four. "Dumbledore- you can't. I've been watching them all day. You couldn't find two people who are less like us. And they've got this son- I saw him kicking his mother all the way up the street, screaming for sweets. Harry Potter come and live here!"**

"Jeez, Petunia, how spoiled is your son?" Lily muttered under her breath while James said much louder, "I completely agree with Professor McGonagall! For the first time ever, I agree with her!"

Everyone smiled gently.

**"It's the best place for him," said Dumbledore firmly."**

"I object!" said Sirius loudly, standing and holding up his index finger.

"Objection denied, Sirius. Sit down!" said Remus, and continued to read.

**"His aunt and uncle will be able to explain everything to him when he's older. I've written them a letter."**

Everyone shook their heads at Dumbledore's antics.

**"A letter?" repeated Professor McGonagall faintly, sitting back down in the wall. "Really, Dumbledore, you think you can explain all this in a letter? These people will never understand him! He'll be famous- a legend- I wouldn't be surprised if today was known as Harry Potter Day in the future- there will be books written about Harry- every child in our world will know his name!"**

"Which isn't necessarily a bad thing!" said James happily. Lily just rolled her eyes at her future husband's attitude towards fame.

**"Exactly," said Dumbledore, looking very seriously over the top of his half-moon glasses. "It would be enough to turn any boy's head. Famous before he can walk and talk! Famous for something he won't even remember! Can't you see how much better off he'll be, growing up away form all that until he's ready to take it?"**

"I agree with Dumbledore," stated Lily, earning a disbelieving stare form the Marauders, but not Snape. He knew she'd think Dumbledore was right.

"Well? Would you rather he grow up without the fame, and be a nice, humble boy, or grow up with it and turn out like Lucius Malfoy?" she asked them, each of them gasping horribly as she said Malfoy's name.

"Don't you dare compare our child to that- that- that filthy, no good, pureblood prat!" sputtered James. Lily gave him an I-told-you-so look.

**"Professor McGonagall opened her mouth, changed her mind, swallowed, and then said, "Yes, yes, you're right, of course. But how is the boy getting here, Dumbledore?" She eyed his cloak suddenly as though she thought he might be hiding Harry underneath it."**

Everyone burst out laughing, including the professor herself. Then Moony continued with tears in his eyes from laughing.

**"Hagrid's bringing him."**

**"You think it- _wise_- to trust Hagrid with something as important as this?"**

"What, you don't trust Hagrid?" asked Sirius.

"Not with babies, no," answered Professor McGonagall. "Please continue, Mr. Lupin."

**"I would trust Hagrid with my life," said Dumbledore.**

**"I'm not saying his heart isn't in the right place," said Professor McGonagall grudgingly, "but you can't pretend he's not careless. He does tend to- what was that?"**

**A low rumbling sound had broken the silence around them. It grew steadily louder as they looked up and down the street for some sign of a headlight; it swelled to a roar as they both looked up at the sky- and a huge motorcycle fell out of the air and landed on the road in front of them."**

"Yes! Wait, why does Hagrid have my new motorcycle?" Sirius asked, for he had just gotten a brand new motorcycle the previous week from a Muggle friend, and he loved it dearly. He had named it 'Betsy'.

"Maybe we'll find out," said Snape, giving him a glare.

**"If the motorcycle was huge, it was nothing to the man sitting astride it. He was almost twice as tall as a normal man and at least five times as wide. He looked simply too big to be allowed, and so _wild_- long tangles of bushy black hair and beard hid most of his face, he had hands the size of trash can lids, and his feet in their leather boots were like baby dolphins. In his vast, muscular arms he was holding a bundle of blankets."**

"Aw, Hagrid and Harry! I wish I could take a picture," said Lily happily.

**"Hagrid," said Dumbledore, sounding relieved. "At last. And where did you get that motorcycle?"**

**"Borrowed it, Professor Dumbledore, sir," said the giant, climbing carefully off the motorcycle as he spoke. "Young Sirius Black lent it to me. I've got him, sir."**

"I'm sorry," interrupted James, with tears in his eyes. "I just can't take the Hagrid voice!" he said, laughing so hard that he fell out of his beanbag chair and rolled on the floor laughing. Everyone else joined in, even Dumbledore. After they were all seated again (not that some of them had left their seats), Remus began reading again.

**"No problems, were there?"**

**"No sir- house was almost destroyed, but I got him out all right before the Muggles started swarmin' around. He fell as we was flyin' over Bristol."**

**Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall bent forward over the bundle of blankets. Inside, just visible, was a baby boy, fast asleep. Under a tuft of jet-black hair over his forehead they could see a curiously shaped cut, like a bolt of lightening.**

**"Is that where-?" whispered Professor McGonagall.**

**"Yes," said Dumbledore. "He'll have that scar forever."**

"Poor Harry," said Lily sadly. "Walking around with an awful scar on his forehead like some kind of freak..."

"No, it's a show of courage and bravery!" argued James, with Sirius nodding his head vigorously.

"Yeah, Lils, and it's not like he actually is a freak!" said Padfoot.

"Don't call me Lils, Sirius!" protested Lily, annoyed.

"Sure thing, Lils," he said laughing with James as they turned their attention back to Moony and the book.

**"Couldn't you do something about it, Dumbledore?"**

**"Even if I could, I wouldn't. Scars can come in handy. I have one myself above my left knee that is the perfect map of the London Underground. Well- give him here, Hagrid- we'd better get this over with."**

**Dumbledore took Harry in his arms and turned towards the Dursleys' house.**

**"Could I- could I say good-bye to him, sir?" asked Hagrid. He bent his great, shaggy head over Harry and gave him what must have been a very scratchy, whiskery kiss. Then, suddenly, Hagrid let out a howl like a wounded dog."**

"Hagrid! Ugh, they'll- I mean, _we'll_ be caught!" Professor McGonagall exclaimed.

**"Shhh!" hissed Professor McGonagall, "you'll wake the Muggles!"**

"See!" she exclaimed in the present.

**"S-s-sorry," sobbed Hagrid, taking out a large, spotted handkerchief and burying his face in it. "But I c-c-can't stand it- Lily an' James dead- an' poor little Harry off ter live with Muggles-"**

**"Yes, yes, it's all very sad, but get a grip on yourself, Hagrid, or we'll be found," Professor McGonagall whispered, patting Hagrid gingerly on the arm as Dumbledore stepped over the low garden wall and walked to the front door. He laid Harry gently on the doorstep, took a letter out of a cloak, tucked it inside Harry's blankets, and then came back to the other two. For a full minute the three of them stood and looked at the little bundle; Hagrid's shoulders shook, Professor McGonagall blinked furiously, and the twinkling light that usually shone from Dumbledore's eyes seemed to have gone out."**

By that time, everyone in the room was crying silent tears, even Snape and Dumbledore.

**"Well," said Dumbledore finally, "that's that. We've no business staying here. We may as well go and join the celebrations."**

**"Yeah," said Hagrid in a very muffled voice, "I'd best get this bike away. G'night, Professor McGonagall- Professor Dumbledore, sir."**

**Wiping his streaming eyes on his jacket sleeve, Hagrid swung himself onto the motorcycle and kicked the engine into life; with a roar it rose into the air and off into the night."**

"Bye-bye, Hagrid," said Peter, though everyone took it as a joke and laughed.

**"I shall see you soon, I expect, Professor McGonagall," said Dumbledore, nodding to her. Professor McGonagall blew her nose in reply.**

**Dumbledore turned and walked back down the street. On the corner he stopped and took out the silver Put-Outer. He clicked it once, and twelve balls of light sped back to their street lamps so that Privet Drive glowed suddenly orange and he could make out a tabby cat slinking around the corner at the other end of the street. He could just see the bundle of blankets on the step of number four."**

"This is awful!" said Lily as she started crying. "I just can't believe this is going to happen!"

"Hey, calm down," said James, putting an arm around her shoulders. "It might not. Remember what that girl, Hermione Granger, said in the letter? We could change the future! We might not die, and then Harry wouldn't have to go live with Muggles. We'll see." Lily calmed down slightly and nodded to Remus.

**"Good luck, Harry," he murmured. He turned on his heel and with a swish of his cloak, he was gone.**

**A breeze ruffled the neat hedges of Privet Drive, which lay silently and tidy under the inky sky, the very last place you would expect astonishing things to happen. Harry Potter rolled over inside his blankets without waking up. One small hand closed on the letter beside him and he slept on, not knowing he would be woken in a few hours' time by Mrs. Dursley's scream as she opened the front door to put out the milk bottle, nor that he would spend the next few weeks being prodded and pinched by his cousin Dudley..."** -to which Lily scoffed scornfully- **"He couldn't know that at this very moment, people meeting in secret all over the country were holding up their glasses and saying in hushed voices: "To Harry Potter- the boy who lived!"**

Remus held the page with a finger as he closed the book. "That's the end of the chapter. How about we get lunch, and then we can keep reading after"

"That's a fantastic idea, Mr. Lupin," said Dumbledore, and he put the book down, and they all headed to the Great Hall in a daze.

* * *

**Ok, so, I know this is a long chapter, but that's because when you're typing 17 pages and adding comments, it gets pretty long! Tell me what you think in the reviews!**


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